SALNs in a scofflaw society

Rene Saguisag

… The marathon House (of arguably namby-pamby tutas?) hearings may finally end but then there’s the remarkable and unexpected quo warranto (QW) proceeding filed by the Solicitor General Joe Calida. All along, the talk had been of RA 6713, until Rep. Vicente Veloso (former Court of Appeals justice) triggered a Eureka! moment in the Lower House, and in the SolGen’s QW petition, Compañero Joe unexpectedly hammered on RA3019, thusly:

“80. The SALN requirement in the Charter recognized what has already been in the statute books. As early as 1960, Congress imposed that requirement in RA3019. Section 7 of the law accordingly states:

“Section 7. Statement of assets and liabilities. Every public officer, within thirty days . . . after assuming office, and within the month of January of every other year thereafter, as well as upon the expiration of his term of office, or upon his resignation or separation from office, shall prepare and file with the office of the corresponding Department Head, or in the case of a Head of Department or chief of an independent office, with the Office of the President, or in the case of members of the Congress and the officials and employees thereof, with the Office of the Secretary of the corresponding House, a true detailed and sworn statement of assets and liabilities, including a statement of the amounts and sources of his income, the amounts of his personal and family expenses and amount of income taxes paid for the next preceding calendar year:….(italics added)

Interesting. If the SolGen can show me an authentic copy of a statement timely filed by him or any other incumbent where the filer disclosed the amounts and sources of his income, the amounts of his personal and family expenses and the amount of income taxes paid for the next preceding calendar year, I’ll eat it.

Read on…

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